AFLW AFLW Season 5, Mega thread

[My Tilly]

Didn't know you followed the women at all; do you hold out much hope for our girls prospects?

We were terrible tonight; our best score for the season but it was close to our worst loss, too - we had a couple of really strong patches in the first half, but heads dropped, we came out cold in the 2nd, and the last quarter was as woeful as just about anything I've seen dished up in the hoops.

I think back to that game in 2004 where the men's team lost to the Saints in the pre-season comp GF (at a time when any friggin' cup would have been something for a Geelong supporter - 41 years and counting at that stage), and Paul Chapman came out and controversially stated that we were nontheless ''better'' than them.
Does the women's team - still very inexperienced - have that kind of talent and confidence lurking on their list? 2004. We were 12th the previous year, yet Chappy saw the potential in that side.

We're well off the pace at the moment, and yet I hopefully see some parallels in that there is a talented young core of players learning together on the job - the results aren't going their way at the moment, and the squad will need some augmenting before it is capable of challenging the better teams, but I don't think things are hopeless for them despite a discouraging 0-4 formline and a loss to a more callow franchise.

I love all sports. Everything mate. I think like most of us, it is a great escape from reality.

I am not sure why but our team looks a step and a half below the standard. Their handball and kicking skills just aren't in the same ball park as majority of teams in the AFLW. Why is this?
I suspect it has a lot to do with the inexperience as Geelong have only been in the competition for 3 seasons compared to the other half who have been in the league for 5 seasons.

The positive is they put up some points on the board this time.

 

[Cursed Cat]

I love all sports. Everything mate. I think like most of us, it is a great escape from reality.

I am not sure why but our team looks a step and a half below the standard. Their handball and kicking skills just aren't in the same ball park as majority of teams in the AFLW. Why is this?
I suspect it has a lot to do with the inexperience as Geelong have only been in the competition for 3 seasons compared to the other half who have been in the league for 5 seasons.

The positive is they put up some points on the board this time.

..and yet we've been beaten by North and St Kilda, as you know North's debut in the comp coincided with ours, and St Kilda were introduced a year after.

We've got a very young side. And a very old side.

I've whinged during the past few seasons now that the mens AFL team has pursued the Dad's Army/Foreign Legion approach to list building as opposed to the Hit-The-Draft-Hard approach that netted us 3 flags.

Well, imo our AFLW side has taken the very approach that I have been advocating for - but it sure is a bumpy ride.

As you say, at least we got some points on the board in this game. A hard loss to take though!

 

[rocker_oz33]

The girls lead up well in the first half but fell away after half time.


The standard of Umpiring in that league is very poor.
They get the dumbest campaigners going around to do it.
Missed a in the back in the first Q.
Missed way too holding balls...to they even watch the game.

Rocky needs some mid time at centre bounces IMO.

 

[rocker_oz33]

Number 21 was good .

 

[dazbroncos]

Looks like incorrect disposal isn't a rule this week

i made it to the 3rd 1/4 before I had to stop and post here.

Ill happily admit we are the youngest and most under developed team in the league.
We tend to get the least from our older and bigger players like Rocky, Aster, Boyd and McWilliams ( although I feel they were all better this week in the first 1/2 than they have been all year so credit them for that no doubt).

We play a game style that requires high skill and work rate and will be great when it comes off in 3 years when the 18-23 year old group have matured in fitness and skill to be able to execute it flawlessly. Until then , we will continue to take our lumps and it will be hard on them ... and us. But it will pay off eventually IMO.

What I cant stand is the duality in interpretations of the rules. In no way would the free kicks missed and paid, and the accumulation of frees paid to the Saints have changed the outcome of the game. The Saints were the better side last night -

BUT FFS PAY THEM BOTH WAYS FOR THE LOVE OF GOD YOU campaignerS

Again... i made it into the 3rd 1/4 before I lost my s**t. I cant even count the number of HTB, head high and just deeply plucked 50's that were called, missed and paid against us. My girl got just brutalised out there and while Im biased and I know not everything I see on TV is the right angle, there were 4 times so far where she got plain robbed. And she's not alone.

I still cant figure out how when a Lasso free is paid that the Saints player can just run forward of the mark when Liv has not moved off her line.

And the dropping ball in the middle of the field the umpire missed as Liv stuck a tackle ( that was paid twice against her for HTB) than then allowed the Saints player to clear and pass to the Saints forward that then lead to a 50 a goal at the end of the 3rd - how the * does that happen!!!

* me that pissed me off. She went Ken Bruce at the Ump and even though I was watching the replay i threw a lot of s**t.

Just pay them both ways.

It makes the fawning of the commentators over the Saints even more unbareable when they too miss that s**t.

GO Catters

 

[dazbroncos]

Higgins & McWilliams quieter that quarter - need more from our senior players

recurring theme this one

GO CAtters

 

[dazbroncos]

Sick of the commentators saying that the umpires are red hot on the holding the ball and then watching the Saints drop the ball cold & nothing called

THIS x 10000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Go CAtters

 

[Drunkcat]

The St Kilda full forward is a big girl with a ass the size of the west gate bridge but she could still run and a good kick

 

[STPer18]

Some of that is pretty harsh and inaccurate - and calling the team the least talented list in the competition is just crap

The Saints were flooding in the first half which makes long kicks pretty ineffective and a useless option. The game has definitely opened up in the second half which makes it easier to go the long kick option

If it's not us then it's probably the Suns, but we're objectively one of if not the worst team in the competition. Hard to make a case otherwise when we're sitting dead last with a % of 29.3.

 

[cats_09]

I love all sports. Everything mate. I think like most of us, it is a great escape from reality.

I am not sure why but our team looks a step and a half below the standard. Their handball and kicking skills just aren't in the same ball park as majority of teams in the AFLW. Why is this?
I suspect it has a lot to do with the inexperience as Geelong have only been in the competition for 3 seasons compared to the other half who have been in the league for 5 seasons.

The positive is they put up some points on the board this time.

There was an interesting point discussed at various times last night, especially when they were talking with Mithen who was in the commentary box
- the teenagers that are coming through now are better prepared than draftees from earlier years because they've had that continuity of football in the preceding years; obviously a clearly pathway now from AusKick to the NAB League to VFLW/State leagues and AFLW

- Mithen said there's also been a noticeable difference between those players coming through their 5th preseason compared to those who have only had 1, 2 or 3; and that coming into their 5th the players were taking on board their own errors or missed efforts from earlier pre-seasons


It's been raised multiple times about our initial recruitment strategy, plus the ongoing list management and think it's one that more than a few of us have vented levels of frustration at

We have 5 players on our list who have completed 5 preseasons - Rocky, Boyd, McWilliams, O'Connor & Keryk, with Boyd & Keryk the only 2 in that group who are under 30.

- McWilliams has been serviceable, yes I would like to see more goals from her (she had her chances last night), but our style of play at times which is overally structured doesn't really help our forwards, though she has tended to find a way of getting involved further up the ground as a linking player. Only problem when she does that is we then are missing a marking target further up the field

- O'Connor & Keryk I'd give ticks to; neither are necessarily the most skilled players, but we know what we are going to get from them every time they enter the field of play, rarely if ever see them drop their heads and you know they are 2 who aren't intimidated by the opposition.

One change I'd like to see though is to throw Keryk back into the middle - she's 25 & 169cm (for comparisons, Purcell is 161cm & Webster is 172cm) and may have a benefit alongside the likes of Webster & Taylor as another bigger body in the guts to help someone like Liv who looks tiny compared to her opponents at times. And looking at Keryk's stats, she is described as a midfielder, and last year against Freo she picked up 20 disposals including 17 kicks, so it's not like she's foreign to that role and playing from the backline I'm not sure we are getting the best from her.

With O'Connor I'd say she's close to our longest kick. I noticed at one stage last night she was taking a kick-in after a Saints behind & I thought that was kinda weird to see our #1 ruck with that responsibility. She didn't venture far beyond the goal square when she took her kick & got the ball comfortable outside the 50m arc, which is something we have struggled with from our defensive end. She is also one who you can't doubt the competitiveness of or the aggression as she does push the boundaries at times

- Rocky & Boyd are the most frustrating of our genuinely experienced players and I don't think we've got enough out of either of them for the experience they have apparently bought to the team. Both of them are patchy not just one game to the next but within games. Rocky was very disappointing the first 3 games this season, she started strong last night but then nothing from her in the second half - said it last week, make a statement and drop her at the selection table. While Boyd had a strong showing last week and it was great to see her holding the contested marks across the ground, but in & our of the game last night.


Across the rest of our list, Ivey & Meg McDonald are the only 2 players to have then completed 4 preseasons and have been playing longer than we've officially been an AFLW team. McDonalds 1st and 2nd seasons were interrupted by a year out of the game after being delisted by the Bulldogs, while Ivey had a year at Carlton before going us. Ivey is one who I'd say has stepped up this year, taken that next step which you'd expect to come from 4 years under your belt at this level, while McDonald has been good since her first game with us and I know she was a little down at times last season but a broken finger on the eve of the season wouldn't have helped things

Darby would be in this group of 4 preseason veterans but is missing this season and I standby a comment from after earlier matches that she is being missed

We have 30 players we have available for selection this season, 23 of them have 3years or less experience at this level and they are the ones we are running through our midfield. Other than O'Connor in the ruck, the other 6 most experienced play predominately at either end of the ground which is leading to a lack of experience in the guts, and maybe even a lack of leadership at times as too much is being expected from the likes of Purcell, Webster & A. McDonald to do the heavy lifting through there

We need to trade an experienced player or 2 who can run through the midfield, ideally someone who will be going into their 5th or 6th season next year but not someone who is 30+ and towards the end of the career


And for comparisons, St Kilda also have 5 players who are now into their 5th seasons - all are under the age of 30, with the likes of Exon & Phillips running through the midfield; they then also have 2 players into their 4th seasons including 21 yr old Whitfort. So the same base numbers as us, but their different ages & positions gives a different look to their list profile, and a better balance than we appear to have

 

[cats_09]

If it's not us then it's probably the Suns, but we're objectively one of if not the worst team in the competition. Hard to make a case otherwise when we're sitting dead last with a % of 29.3.

I'm not pretending we're one of the best teams in the comp, but I'd say that percentage doesn't tell the full story of our season or how we've actually played

Looking at the ladder, the Lions are on top of the ladder with 500%, but that's come from games against 3 of the newbies in Eagles, Suns & Richmond
- Freo are sitting 2nd with 225% having played GWS (interrupted preseason), newbies Eagles and then a comprehensive win over the Crows
I'd take more positives from Freo's games than I would from the Lions even though they have more than doubled the percentage of the other teams


No argument we were outplayed by North Melbourne, but we won't be the only team that happens to this year - s**t luck to get them first up

But against Collingwood in round 2, Bulldogs in round 3 and the Saints last night we actually played periods & quarters of dominating football and had our chances in each match - you need to have some skill & ability to do that

- We controlled the first quarter against Collingwood, kicked 2 goals & McWilliams was denied 2 on the goal line, while the Collingwood's only goals came from our ill-discipline. We don't give away 3 x 50m penalties resulting in their only goals while kicking 4 ourselves, gives things a different look going in at quarter time. Even at 3/4 time there was only 10 points in the match

- The Bulldogs match was interesting; they kicked an early goal against the run of things but across the 2nd & 3rd quarters could only add 2 behinds. At the ground it felt a very open match, both teams having some good play between their backlines & the half-forward area, but neither team able to assert their dominance going forward.
We finally kicked our first goal in the 3rd quarter, Williams then had a chance to kick her first & our second which would have put us in front going in at 3/4 time, instead it was a behind and we were down by 1 point. We then had the control of play for the first 5 minutes of the last quarter at the game it felt like whoever was the first team to kick that 2nd goal would be the team to go on & win the match - we kept peppering the goals, but couldn't convert

- Last night, we had the opportunity to kick 4 goals in the first but didn't take advantage of our dominance and mid-way through the quarter it was the Saints who kicked a goal against the run of play. The game felt very defensive in the 2nd quarter with neither team able to get on top and then in the 3rd it was the Saints who took advantage of their sheer amount of possession. And then in the last it was the Saints who kicked a couple of early goals before we kicked 2 kick goals & had chances to bring the game back to 18 points & momentum


If all our games had played out like the North match where we were never in the match, the opposition had control from early on and we were just fighting to even get the ball forward then I would agree that we'd be deserving of the title of the worse team in the league. But the reality is we've shown some real positives at times over our past 3 matches, we've shown that we can control the play for extended periods and make it difficult for the opposition - the problem we've got is putting that together across 4 quarters, and putting on scoreboard pressure when we have those periods of dominance.

We've had Hood at the helm for 3 seasons & he was also our VFLW coach in 2017 & 18 (interestingly, he was named VFLW coach of the year in 2017) - maybe a first point of change is in the coaching box and bringing in someone new
I also don't think we need a massive change in playing personal - keep backing in our youth, but look at some of those in the 30+ bracket and see if we can bring in a couple/few player with that 4 to 5 years of experience under their belts, that can bring some experience & leadership to our midfield

 

[cats_09]

Hopefully this is a good sign

 

[cats_09]

This is what football's about - love the 2nd vid

 

[STPer18]

Tigers did well to take Carlton down to the wire, considering the Blues spanked the Saints just last week.

 

[Geelong_Sicko]

Hopefully this is a good sign

Always good to beat the Hawks!!!

 

[winty]

Hopefully this is a good sign

Wonder if this will mean we'll have a 6th debutant next week with Mia Skinner playing well up forward.

 

[cats_09]

Watching the Blues vs Tigers and it's also a countdown clock in the 4th - maybe it's just the convention they've gone with

But just before the Blues were up by 7 points, Brennan had a shot on goal and it fell short but was knocked over the line - Kellie Underwood doing the commenting comes up with, "Carlton extend their lead to 8"

I know that a behind is only worth 1 point, but a bit harsh if the team with a shot on goal misses the shot but a point is awarded to the opposition

And good to see that the level of umpiring was pretty questionable today - need to see vast improvement in that across the league

Richmond kicked an early goal in the last after being awarded a free kick in their forward 50 - Richmond player drops the head, there was contact with the Blues player but it appeared to be top of Rich gals head with the jaw of the Blues player; Blues player was the one that went down after contact, the other one playing on until umpires paid the free

Just call play on in that situation as it was an accidental clash of heads

 

[winty]

This is a pretty disturbing stat which highlights our impotency up forward this season.

Last season we scored 211 points in 6 games. Thus far this season we've scored 56 points in 4.

 

[cats_09]

Wonder if this will mean we'll have a 6th debutant next week with Mia Skinner playing well up forward.

Leave Barber & Williams - maybe in place of Rocky or Boyd

 

[winty]

Leave Barber & Williams - maybe in place of Rocky or Boyd

I'd probably drop Boyd. She's a good mark, but once the ball hits the deck, she's a liability.

Have Skinner and Barber deep forward, with McWilliams, Rocky and Williams across half forward.

 

[winty]

Gold Coast looking good early. Will they be able to keep it up though?

 

[winty]

 

[winty]

This was a nice touch...

 

[winty]

This game is a bit like ours last night. Gold Coast held on for a half, but were blown away in the 3rd quarter.

The Suns' current percentage is 30%, just 0.68% better than ours at the moment. Freo will be kicking with the breeze in the last term too.

 

[cats_09]

I'd probably drop Boyd. She's a good mark, but once the ball hits the deck, she's a liability.

Have Skinner and Barber deep forward, with McWilliams, Rocky and Williams across half forward.

Last night boots Boyd had 3 kicks, 3 handballs, 2 marks and 1 tackle; interestingly Barber also had 3 kicks, 3 handballs, then it was 1 mark and 3 tackles + a behind

I know Boyd had a bigger presence last week & probably was her best game in the hoops, but last night felt like what we've become used to seeing from her. If a standard game from Boyd is going to be 6 disposals & a couple of marks, let's blood someone younger because I doubt they'd have less of a presence than that

The rawness of Barber & Williams is quite obvious, but you can tell there's something to work with & that pumping games into them is going to be beneficial for both their future and the clubs.

They also bring this youthful exuberance, a wand and willingness to get involved - if Skinner can bring similar then I'm all for it